ALENTEJO
After driving more than 10 miles across the Vasco da Gama bridge, we found ourselves in the beautiful region of the Alentejo.
Our first stop was a Vertigem Azul catamaran cruise on the Sado River, which quickly became one of the trip’s highlights. Seeing the river’s resident dolphins is never guaranteed, but we were lucky enough to spot them poking their fins above the water and playing around under the boat.
From the river, we headed to the Atlantic coastline. Since 2012, the Alentejo and Algarve coastline has been home to the Rota Vicentina, a network of walking and cycling trails. Following the painted marks on the rocks and posts, each twist and turn of the Fisherman’s Trail gave us beautiful views of the coast, hard to see unless you explore by foot.
The region is perfect for nature lovers. Our third night was at the remote Monte do Giestal, deep in the Alentejo
countryside, where the evening was spent stargazing.
And just like the central region, the Alentejo is famous for its wines. For a unique wine-and-food pairing experience, we visited Quetzal. Built on the hillside, the winery uses gravity to help with the winemaking process. The journey starts on the highest floor, and the wine ends up in the cellar a few storeys below, where classical music is played to the barrels in the belief the vibrations help form tiny crystals in the wine.
WHAT THE AGENTS SAY
“There is more diversity to Portugal than people think. You can sell beyond Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve – there is more out there that is just as interesting, if not nicer.” Lorna Turner, Marple Travel
“The properties we stayed in were really unique and that’s what people want these days – something different.” Nikki Pennington, Travel Counsellors
“I loved going to Óbidos, it was different
from what I thought it would be, and there’s lots of history there.” Ken Garrity, Ken Garrity Travel
“The catamaran cruise and seeing the
dolphins was my favourite activity. The dolphins were amazing – I didn’t think we’d get so close to them – and the catamaran was out of this world.” Jools Fryer, Egencia
“I would recommend the Rota Vicentina walk because we’ve got a few customers who like to go birdwatching and they don’t want to be in the hustle and bustle. So somewhere like this is fantastic.” Sarah Wheatcroft, Althams Travel
Can’t Skip Portugal World’s Leading Destination
The Alentejo is also home to Alqueva Lake, the largest man-made lake in Portugal, where we tried paddleboarding. The still water was ideal for beginners – the lake covers more than 96 square miles, so there’s plenty of space to try it.
The region’s capital, Évora, was the perfect end to the trip. The stylish M’Ar de Ar Aqueduto boutique hotel in the historic centre gave us a little taste of luxury before visiting some of the city’s landmarks, including an extremely well-preserved Roman temple.
VISITPORTUGAL.COM
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